Most of Detroit's players cleared out fast after their second straight loss, this one with five turnovers, defensive and special-teams miscues and the distinct feeling of a team with more questions than answers.

That September start feels long gone now, almost an early-season mirage. The Lions weren’t playing consistently well then -- saying after wins they could play better -- and certainly not now after their second straight loss to a team with an sub-.500 record.

“We’ve made the margin for us a lot shorter with the end of the season coming close with five games,” defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh said. “We’ve just got to make the most out of these next five weeks.

“They are very important and we made it a lot tougher on ourselves.”

After five turnovers on offense and allowing Tampa Bay rookie quarterback Mike Glennon to complete 14 of 21 passes for 247 yards, two touchdowns, no interceptions and a 138.4 quarterback rating, tougher is perhaps an understatement.

In some ways, maybe this shouldn’t be surprising. This franchise has one playoff win in its past 50-plus years and are in a race for a division title this late in the year for the first time this century. The Lions are in a position in which they could make their second playoff appearance in three seasons, something Detroit has not done since the 1990s.

Then came Sunday, when the errors were as unbelievable as they were costly.

There was an interception after the best receiver in the game, Calvin Johnson, had the ball knocked out of his hands on the final drive of the game.

There was a fumble by Kris Durham, who had coughed it up just once in his entire college and professional career before Sunday, as he was heading out of bounds.

There was a blocked punt, the first one the Lions have allowed this season.

There was Matthew Stafford throwing four interceptions for the first time since Week 10 of the 2011 season.

It was a combination of gaffes for a team trying to make the playoffs.

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"It's the turnovers, you know,” Johnson said. "To be where we were in the game even with all the turnovers, however many we had, and still have a chance to win it at the end, you know.

"We just take care of the ball and we wouldn’t even be close to that position."

In the increasing insanity that is the NFC North, Detroit still leads the division with Green Bay coming to town on Thanksgiving Day. Despite these past two losses, the Lions still would be in the playoffs if the season ended today.

But if the Lions had won Sunday, had not had a fourth-quarter lead disappear for the second consecutive week, they would be in control of the division.

Instead, the Lions feel like a team reeling.

"As disappointing and as bitter a loss as this is, we’ve got a short turnaround to bounce back," Detroit coach Jim Schwartz said. “We have a five-game season. This does not eliminate us from the playoffs.

"It doesn’t do anything other than make the last five games even more urgent."

Suh said Detroit has not played its best game this season, but the question now is when or if that might come.

Is the Detroit team that lost Sunday the true Lions, or is this just a temporary downturn?

Thursday's game will tell a lot. There is still some hope within the frustration, still opportunities in the confusion of all the turnovers.

"It’s frustrating," Burleson said. "But at the same time, we still have a chance to right our wrongs. We still have a chance to win the division, so how mad can you be.

"You can be mad until you go to sleep and then you wake up and you have got to change you mind and figure out what’s important. Is it thinking about this loss for two more days or is it shifting your focus to Green Bay and getting a win on Thanksgiving."

Return of Burleson:Nate Burleson has said for a couple of weeks that he planned on coming back and trying to pick up right where he left off, which was a 116-yard game against Washington in Week 3. He’s well on his way to proving that right after a massive first half.

Burleson was Detroit’s most-targeted receiver in the first half, catching five passes for 67 yards and his first touchdown of the season, one that resulted in a pizza delivery touchdown celebration. Burleson was targeted one more time than Calvin Johnson, who had six attempts.

A little more pressure: Detroit has two first-half sacks, one from Ziggy Ansah, who is in his first game back after suffering an ankle injury against Dallas in October. The other came on a rare blitz from the Lions, where Glover Quin sacked Mike Glennon for a 13-yard loss.

Otherwise, there hasn’t been much pressure on Tampa Bay quarterback Mike Glennon, a continuation of the same issues the Lions have had throughout much of the season with their four-man rush. There has been limited rushing success today but nothing really strong.

Cornerback conundrum: In part due to the issues with pressure on the defensive line, Detroit’s cornerbacks have struggled throughout the day. Rashean Mathis had an awful drive in the second quarter, being beat in coverage on a 47-yard pass to Vincent Jackson and then again on a touchdown pass from Glennon to Tiquan Underwood. The Lions have had cornerback issues for a good portion of the season as well and it showed again against Tampa Bay.

Consider this -- Glennon finished the first half 9 of 11 for 132 yards, a touchdown, no interceptions and a 147.0 quarterback rating. That’s just not good for Detroit’s defense.

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